Most asylum seekers housed on the government’s so-called ‘deterrent barge’ flew to the UK on legal flights, The Independent has found.
The first migrants arrived on board the Bibby Stockholm this week, with Home Office minister Sarah Dines indicating it could increase rapidly to its capacity of around 500 men.
Much has been said of the humanitarian implications of housing migrants on barges, with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) saying it is a “deathtrap” and others comparing it to modern slave ships.
Ministers have claimed that the barge and use of military bases as accommodation would “deter” English Channel crossings, but the majority of those so far selected for the vessel arrived by plane.
After speaking to charities and legal firms working with more than 30 asylum seekers ordered to move onto the barge by the Home Office, The Independent has been told of only two who arrived by small boat.
All others used regular passenger planes to reach the UK, with some claiming asylum at the airport shortly after landing – meaning they did not enter the country illegally.
A former Conservative minister called the situation “extraordinary”, adding: “The policy of reducing hotels is not working because they’ve got more people coming and they’re still using them.
“Even though they’ve got the barge and have been talking about tents and military bases and the rest of it nothing has changed. People are still coming so there’s no deterrent factor.”
Migrant crossings reached the highest number in a single day for the year so far as figures confirmed over 100,000 people have made the journey in the past five years.
Since current records began on January 1 2018, 100,715 migrants have arrived in the UK after making the journey, according to analysis of Government data by the PA news agency.
The milestone was reached after 755 people crossed the Channel in 14 boats on Thursday. This is the highest daily number so far this year and suggests an average of around 54 people per boat.
The previous high for 2023 was 686 people on July 7.
Rishi Sunak has made stopping the small boats one of his key priorities in government.
It’s one of a number of objectives he has struggled to deliver on.
Related: Daily Mail columnist fumes at Bibby Stockholm residents being fed cereal, toast and jam